Uncle Buck
New member
My advice for what it is worth.
Will be a good season, better than last if the weather is favorable. The crops are coming out, but it will get better as the season goes on. You do not have to be here for the opener unless you enjoy the traditional aspects. I will go to Mitchell/Artesian tomorrow and soak a little of it up.
I usually have my grandson out here but a change in the Minnesota school calendar means he won't be out till next week. I could hook-up with a friend and go to Timber Lake, truly the middle of nowhere but good bird numbers. It's a long trip for two days so I think I'll pass as I am going to Kansas and North Dakota later.
Given perfect weather, a 4-6 in first snowfall in my dreams, that's the day you want to arrive(or the nite before) particularly if you are a dog man. What a blast. The corn pounders should have it pretty good.
I think I'll hunt ducks and geese in the AM and then screw around on some public land. In days past I had 80 acres of my own ground that 6-7 guys could take an opening day limit on. I don't have it anymore and if I did would hold off till my Grandson got here with his buddy. I have about 30 acres behind the house of some very good cover and I may hunt it at sundown. Last year there were about 60 birds back there but it was surrounded by corn and did not shoot much until it came out, the day after Thanksgiving. I do not think there are that many birds back there this year, but may actually shoot more. It's surrounded by picked beans.
There is a small walk-in about ten miles north of me where I saw 4 roosters Sunday nite last. I took my youngest dog up there and she and the farmer's lab who joined up put up four roosters. I thought one was a hen till the little joker cackled out of range--young bird. A nice rooster was flushed by the lab and it was out a ways and I wanted to shoot a pointed bird over Poco who was in the same vicinity. Together the dog were working some tough slough over while I walked the edge--where it was still pretty tough. Another roti flushed wild where things got a little thinner. H e cackled in laughter too.
Poco then pointed three hens. The lab flushed one on the other side near the corn. Poco was splashing around in the really wet stuff when I heard her stop. I figure she was pointing. A few seconds and a rooster springs up out of the slough and goes left presenting a good shot and down he comes with a splash. Poco is right on him and brings him out. He is an old swamp-bird, not much of a tail but long spurs. On the way back to the truck, Poco disappears just to my right. I sneak up and she is on a hard point. I kick a hen out but it's a pretty sight and gives me a chance to put a little more whoa on her. I am happy to get a nice bird and some dog work on a half hour hunt at a place that I have never hunted before, but definitely will again. This place will be killer with some snow on the ground or freeze on the slough.
I encourage all who are coming early or late to consider wet feet. There is water you may have to walk through getting around in CRP. It's dryer west of the River and I predict the hunting will be better out there and north of Pierre than the eastern portion. Northeast wet but it dried up west of Watertown too.
The best hunting should start about Nov.1 as a good portion of the corn should be gone. It's all in the weather from there on.
GOOD LUCK AND SAFE HUNTING TO ALL!!! Uncle Buck
Will be a good season, better than last if the weather is favorable. The crops are coming out, but it will get better as the season goes on. You do not have to be here for the opener unless you enjoy the traditional aspects. I will go to Mitchell/Artesian tomorrow and soak a little of it up.
I usually have my grandson out here but a change in the Minnesota school calendar means he won't be out till next week. I could hook-up with a friend and go to Timber Lake, truly the middle of nowhere but good bird numbers. It's a long trip for two days so I think I'll pass as I am going to Kansas and North Dakota later.
Given perfect weather, a 4-6 in first snowfall in my dreams, that's the day you want to arrive(or the nite before) particularly if you are a dog man. What a blast. The corn pounders should have it pretty good.
I think I'll hunt ducks and geese in the AM and then screw around on some public land. In days past I had 80 acres of my own ground that 6-7 guys could take an opening day limit on. I don't have it anymore and if I did would hold off till my Grandson got here with his buddy. I have about 30 acres behind the house of some very good cover and I may hunt it at sundown. Last year there were about 60 birds back there but it was surrounded by corn and did not shoot much until it came out, the day after Thanksgiving. I do not think there are that many birds back there this year, but may actually shoot more. It's surrounded by picked beans.
There is a small walk-in about ten miles north of me where I saw 4 roosters Sunday nite last. I took my youngest dog up there and she and the farmer's lab who joined up put up four roosters. I thought one was a hen till the little joker cackled out of range--young bird. A nice rooster was flushed by the lab and it was out a ways and I wanted to shoot a pointed bird over Poco who was in the same vicinity. Together the dog were working some tough slough over while I walked the edge--where it was still pretty tough. Another roti flushed wild where things got a little thinner. H e cackled in laughter too.
Poco then pointed three hens. The lab flushed one on the other side near the corn. Poco was splashing around in the really wet stuff when I heard her stop. I figure she was pointing. A few seconds and a rooster springs up out of the slough and goes left presenting a good shot and down he comes with a splash. Poco is right on him and brings him out. He is an old swamp-bird, not much of a tail but long spurs. On the way back to the truck, Poco disappears just to my right. I sneak up and she is on a hard point. I kick a hen out but it's a pretty sight and gives me a chance to put a little more whoa on her. I am happy to get a nice bird and some dog work on a half hour hunt at a place that I have never hunted before, but definitely will again. This place will be killer with some snow on the ground or freeze on the slough.
I encourage all who are coming early or late to consider wet feet. There is water you may have to walk through getting around in CRP. It's dryer west of the River and I predict the hunting will be better out there and north of Pierre than the eastern portion. Northeast wet but it dried up west of Watertown too.
The best hunting should start about Nov.1 as a good portion of the corn should be gone. It's all in the weather from there on.
GOOD LUCK AND SAFE HUNTING TO ALL!!! Uncle Buck
